(06 Sep 2013, 12:43 pm)Adam Malarkey wrote Monthly Photo Competition
For the Month of December I the Topic should be "Photo of Year" as chosen by all members, with Novembers winner picking the Topic for January instead. I know this may over complicate things for how the competition is run. But think it is a good idea, if it isn't already in place.
I was a bit pushed for themes this month, hence the lenient title of 'ANYTHING!'
October, November and December have obvious themes that could be chosen based upon holidays celebrated in those months. Of course it is ultimately dependent on the winner of the previous month's competition and they may not suggest a theme related to a holiday celebrated within that month, but hopefully someone will pick a good theme if they win!
I do want to hear suggestions for the Monthly Comp though. I appreciate not all of our members take photographs, but those that do often don't enter; nor do they vote... 'Tis a great shame really, as I think discussions that aren't necessarily related to current bus events should be more active. There are various other communities that serve the same purpose as this website, but their discussion is somewhat limited and it all seems very much forced to me.
(06 Sep 2013, 12:43 pm)Adam Malarkey wrote A Blast From The Past or On this Day in e.g. 1992
This could be anything from an Odd Working Photo from GNE or a News Article regarding the Quality Contracts or something like that, I think this would a great addition to the Forum under the Bygone Era possibly unless it can fit into other Areas.
The administrators (past and present) of this forum have set up the forum so that the community can expand it how they would like to. I have recently noticed more threads popping up in our off topic sections (both bus and non-bus related) and members hosting their own competitions to run alongside our more frequently used, "Guess The Bus" and of course, Monthly Comp.
Other members have shown interest in your above suggestion already, which proves that it is a good idea and the thread wouldn't die straight away. I see potential for this to occur on Thursdays/Fridays, under the name of "Throwback Thursday" or "Flashback Friday".
The above (more so the former from experience) are quite common on social media websites such as Instagram, Twitter and Tumblr, when content from the past is shared. The trend is being adapted on other social media websites too, so why not have it on North East Buses?
What I would suggest, however, is that this thread does emerge in the off-topic bus section rather than the Bygone Era.
(06 Sep 2013, 12:43 pm)Adam Malarkey wrote The News
Now I personally love this New Addition to the Forum as it is very smartly laid out and is also very informative, Now this thought may only work on the GNE side but I'm not sure. What about a summary of Odd Workings Captured by NEB Flickr Members over the course of the week as not everyone posts links to there photos for people to view on say the GNE Page.
At present, news will only be submitted on a fortnightly basis. When originally setting up the news, I decided that I didn't want anyone to tie themselves down with a job that had to be done weekly. Despite this, I have said to the site's admin team that I am more than happy to provide a weekly update in the event of a great deal of transfers happening. I'm looking at Sunday's update now, and there has just been so many things happening over the past two weeks. It really wouldn't be logical to include incorrect allocations when so many happen daily. We are containing loans (even if they are just daily), and I do think that is as lenient as we can become.
Thanks for your ideas, Adam.